


Don’t Fear the Reaper

by Raelilly



Category: HoO - Fandom, PJO - Fandom, percy jackson - Fandom
Genre: Dark, Death, Everybody Dies, M/M, Major character death - Freeform, Mentions of Suicide, Reaper Nico, Sorry this got really dark, Violence, mentions of self harm, trigger warning
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-24
Updated: 2020-06-24
Packaged: 2021-03-03 18:46:57
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,523
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24890290
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Raelilly/pseuds/Raelilly
Summary: When Will loses a patient he meets Death, and Death’s name is Nico.Please pay attention to the tags, this one got a little dark.
Relationships: Nico di Angelo/ Will Solace
Comments: 3
Kudos: 56
Collections: Solangelo Week 2020





	Don’t Fear the Reaper

**Author's Note:**

> Solangelo Week day 3! I went with Reaper Nico, and a very lonely Will. I hope you enjoy.

“Kayla, I need another 20cc’s and then we’ll hit her again. Austin, call up to surgery and find out what’s taking them so long, I need them here NOW.”

“Will,” Kayla put a hand on his shoulder, “they’re not coming. It’s too late. You need to call it.”

“NO!”Will pulled away, “Give her a chance Kayla, I’m not giving up! Austin, make that call!”

“Will,” she reached out more firmly this time, her eyes sliding to Austin who returned a sympathetic glance, “I appreciate your optimism more than most, and I’ve seen you work some miracles in the past but this is not going to be one of them. She’s gone, you know she’s gone. You need to call it.”

Will let his eyes slide to his patients face, bloodied and swollen, vacant blue eyes staring off into nothing. The EMT’s that brought her in said that an argument with her boyfriend had gone south, he had beaten her with a blunt object, they weren’t sure what. She had called 911 when he left to get his gun. Last Will heard the police were still out looking for him. Her life had slipped away at least 20 minutes ago, it had only been his stubborn insistence that had kept his team going this long. Persistence will only get you so far. He closed his eyes momentarily and sighed heavily before turning to the clock on the wall.

“Time of death, 23:47.” It came out as a reverent whisper, it was the best Will could manage for her now.

He pulled off his dirty gloves for disposal as Kayla squeezed his shoulder. “Austin and I will get the clean up started and contact the morgue. I’ll get the paperwork started and bring it for review in a few. Take a break, get yourself together, we have more patients but nothing that needs immediate attention.” Will kept his head down as he nodded and turned for the door.

“Dr. Solace,” Kayla called. Will turned back, surprised to hear the formal address from his charge nurse and friend, “we did everything we could. You made all the right decisions, sometimes they just get to us too late.”

He nodded solemnly before heading to the staff break room. It was an odd combination of kitchen and locker room, a block of lockers, with two coffee pots and a sink on the counter, a refrigerator, and couches along the far wall. A combination that could only be borne of the strict efficiency that comes with working the emergency department of Olympus Medical. Will had worked here long enough that it felt like a second home.

He washed his hands and splashed some water on his face before leaning his elbows on the counter and placing his head in his hands, still wet fingers threading into his hair and pulling. Every doctor loses patients, Will knows this, and he knows objectively that he is a good doctor, that he saves more patients than he loses. The simple fact of the matter is that he works in a large emergency room, in the largest hospital in the state, it would be statistically impossible to save all of them.

But that doesn’t make it any easier.

“She’s right you know.”

Even though it’s not familiar, the voice doesn’t startle him as much as it should. He turns his head to find a man perched on the arm of the couch, legs stretched out in front of him, ankles crossed. The man is tall and lean, although not quite as tall as Will, his posture is a picture of relaxed ease. Will knows there’s a kinetic energy hiding under his casual exterior. He’s just not quite sure how he knows that, he’s never seen this man before in his life.

Has he?

The stranger stands out from what you would expect in the hospital; Dressed in black from his combat boots all the way up to his sleek leather jacket, with skin tight black jeans, ripped artfully enough that Will wonders if they were purchased that way, and a black thermal knit shirt. Silver chains drip from his belt loops, Will assumes they attach to a wallet in his back pocket, small silver skull charms hang along the chains, and a larger version adorns a ring on his left middle finger. He reminds Will of his under-grad days, listening to local punk bands in shitty off campus bars, drinking enough to foster his courage to hit on, well, guys that looked an awful lot like this guy.

Maybe they have met before?

His face is what convinces Will they’ve never met before, there’s NO WAY he would forget a face like that. His jaw is squared, with high cheek bones and a bottom lip that was slightly fuller than the top, which made him look like he was slightly disappointed. Will can’t tell if the dark hair that falls in the man’s face, or if he has dark circles under his eyes; Shadows seem to dance on his skin. It’s the eyes though that actually seem familiar. Framed with thick lashes, his irises are so dark brown Will can barely discern where his pupils begin, maybe if he stepped closer... Will really wanted to step closer. In fact, he feels none of the discomfort that should be associated with a random stranger walking in on what should be a very private moment, in a hospital staff room that he absolutely should not have access to since he clearly does not work at this hospital.

“You shouldn’t be in here,” is all Will can think of to say.

The man laughs softly, “You’re right, I shouldn’t be Here,” he puts heavy emphasis on the last word, “but I wanted to check on you. This part is never easy. Are you alright?”

“I don’t know what you mean,” Will answers, “but you should go before security finds you. This room is for hospital staff only, and Frank’s on duty tonight, you do NOT want to be escorted out by him.”

The man grinned, but still managed to look slightly disappointed. “Don’t worry, I’ll be on my way soon enough. Your friend, she was right. You know that, right?”

Will remembers Kayla’s words from earlier. His patient’s face flashes briefly in his memory, eyes vacant, lips tainted with blood. He sighs.

“I did what I could, yeah. Unfortunately knowing that doesn’t make it any easier.”

“I know,” the man pushed himself off the arm of the couch and stepped closer to Will, his smile is sad, “it never gets easier. That I can promise you. It should never be easy, that’s the point. If it helps I can promise that she harbors no ill will to you, none of them ever have.”

“There’s no way you can know that,” Will’s eyes were locked with the strangers. His staring had long ago passed what was considered polite, but the stranger didn’t seem to mind, he met Will’s eyes with a look that seemed almost.... pleading?

“Isn’t there?” Was all the man said in response. He finally broke eye contact as he moved to one of the coffee pots, smelled the contents, evidently deemed it acceptable and poured some into two paper cups. Will watched as he added little packets of sugar and powdered creamer, then passed one cup to Will and took a sip from the second. He winced, “Not the best I’ve ever had, but it works. You should take a sip. The heat helps.”

Will took a sip from the cup in his hand and nearly dropped the rest. He set the cup on the counter and turned to the stranger.

This man should not know how Will takes his coffee.

“I”m sorry, do I know you?”

The stranger smiled, though it didn’t reach his eyes this time. He looked down into his own coffee, “we may have met once or twice.”

“Who are you?” Will knew he should be feeling some level of anxiety at this point, but he didn’t feel like this man was a threat. He felt more.... familiar.

“You have known Death in your life William Solace.” His voice was quiet, somber and filled with regret.

And he was right.

Will remembered his grandmother and grandfather, Lee and Michael, his mother, and a handful of patients, he had been with them all when they passed. He remembered the same feeling of helpless frustration, loneliness that seemed like it would never end, the feeling of responsibility.

He remembered a hot cup of coffee and darkest brown eyes. But then...

“I don’t remember your name,” Will leaned back against the counter for support, his head swimming with uncertainty. The stranger met his eyes again, this time they held hope.

“Nico,” he answered.

“Nico. We have met before, why couldn’t I remember?” Will wondered idly if this is what if felt like to lose your mind. He knew it wasn’t.

Nico shrugged before pulling himself up to sit on the counter top, coffee finished and paper cup abandoned. “The living are not meant to remember. But Death always remembers.” His smile was bitter now, he began to twist the skull ring on his finger.

The bitterness made Will think idly of the dark months he had spent following his mother’s death. Feeling so alone and lost. He remembered nights spent on the bathroom floor, razor blades and lighters, wondering just how deep he would have to go to make it count, but still worrying about getting blood on the bathroom rug she had picked out. Would he find her that way?

He wondered if Nico knew, if he had been waiting to collect Will on those nights. Would he remember if he had?

Will ran his fingers through is hair and turned to face Nico more fully, “Where do you take them?”

“I can’t tell you, you will know when it’s your time to know. Until then I’m afraid it will have to be a mystery.” Nico seemed to pale under Will’s gaze, as if he knew what was coming. He probably did.

“Why did you have to take her?” Will wasn’t exactly sure if he was asking about his patient tonight or not.

Nico sighed, “Sometimes death can not be prevented. Sometimes, it should not be prevented. I don’t get to make the decision, I just retrieve the dead and help them to transition.” He shrugged, “it’s been my job for a very long time.”

“How long?” Will asked.

Nico’s smile was once again tinged with sadness, “time is different for me, I don’t really know. I only know how many more dead I have to escort.”

Will moved to face Nico, standing between his knees. “Do you know when it will be my turn?”

Nico’s eyes were bottomless shadows when he met Will’s gaze this time. He nodded.

“That’s not the first time I’ve asked that, is it?” Nico shook his head.

Will cleared his throat, “Either way, it’s fine because honestly I don’t think I want to know anymore.”

“Anymore?” Nico smiled before Will could reply, he reached out and smoothed Will’s hair. Will was sure it must be a mess from all the times he had run his hands through it tonight.

Nico sighed again, “The truth is I can’t tell you. But I can tell you that when it’s time, I will be the one to meet you. So at least you don’t have to worry, it won’t be a stranger.”

“Won’t it? Won’t I forget you again?” Will leaned in slightly to Nico’s touch, it was more soothing than it should have been.

“Death always remembers Will.” Nico leaned in, Will thought for a second that he was going to kiss him. He closed his eyes and leaned forward slightly in anticipation.

“Always.”

The door to the break room clattered open as Kayla stepped in. Will startled and knocked his coffee off the counter, it splattered on his shoes and the side of the counter.

What had he been doing?

“Shit, sorry about your shoes, I’ll help you clean it up.” Kayla started to pull paper towels from the dispenser to clean up the mess. “You doing ok Will? I brought the paperwork for you to sign off.”

Right, his patient had passed away, Will had come into the break room to clear his head with a cup of coffee. Which was now on his shoes.

But wasn’t there something else?

“Yeah, fine, I guess my mind was just wandering.” Will picked up his empty cup from the floor, and a second that someone had left behind on the counter, and tossed them into the trash. It never ceased to amaze him how dirty his coworkers could be.

Kayla started to review the paperwork with Will, he signed off where necessary, they were near the end when Will thought to ask, “Did they find him?”

“Find who?” Kayla asked.

“The boyfriend, the guy that did that to her, did they find him?”

“I don’t know,” Kayla sighed heavily. “I don’t suppose we’ll know unless they call us to testify. Anyway come on, we still have patients waiting. You good?”

“Yeah,” Will opened the door and let Kayla pass, “the coffee helped.”

Will followed Kayla out of the door but stopped as he heard a commotion off to his left.

“You motherfuckers are dead! Where is she? You fucking KILLED her didn’t you?”

Will turned to his left to see what was going on, and the world seemed to move into slow motion.

He saw Frank, their head of security, fear clear on his face. He looked to be running up the hallway towards a very large man. Will noticed odd little details, the way the man’s shirt was riding up on one side, the flecks of spittle trapped in his beard, the blood on his shirt, the gun in his hand.

Which was pointed right at Kayla.

Even with the slow motion Will didn’t have time to think. He threw his right arm into Kayla and pushed her to the ground just as shots broke out.

One

Two

Three

Will didn’t hear them so much as feel them, they felt like heat and pressure, and then he was falling. He heard screaming, and the crunch of Frank tackling the shooter, he heard Kayla scream his name.

It seemed to take forever to hit the ground.

When he did the world around him seemed to be muted, like his ears had been packed full of gauze. He heard noise but couldn’t make out any actual words, and all he could see was the glow of the fluorescent light above him, bright and unforgiving. He squinted, or maybe the shadows pulled in to his line of vision, he wasn’t really sure. 

Will suddenly wasn’t really sure about much.

Until he was.

He was sure of dark brown eyes, and a hand with a silver skull ring on the middle finger reaching out to pull him up off of the floor.

Will sighed the only word he could, the only one that mattered.

Because he remembered.

“Nico.”


End file.
